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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 31, 2025

A Customizable Approach for the Enzymatic Production and Purification of Diterpenoid Natural Products

A Customizable Approach for the Enzymatic Production and Purification of Diterpenoid Natural Products

Published on: October 4, 2019

Parallel evolution of cannabinoid biosynthesis.

Paula Berman¹, Luis Alejandro de Haro², Adam Jozwiak²

¹Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. bermansh@gmail.com.

|May 1, 2023

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers discovered that Helichrysum umbraculigerum, an unrelated plant, produces cannabinoids like cannabigerolic acid. This finding offers a new source for cannabinoid discovery and engineering.

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Area of Science:

Plant biochemistry
Genomics
Metabolic engineering

Background:

The endocannabinoid system's modulation shows therapeutic potential across human diseases.
High demand for novel cannabinoids drives exploration of new sources and manufacturing methods.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate Helichrysum umbraculigerum as a novel source of Cannabis-type cannabinoids.
To elucidate the molecular and chemical pathways of cannabinoid biosynthesis in H. umbraculigerum.

Main Methods:

De novo whole-genome sequencing of H. umbraculigerum.
Chemical structure annotation and enzymatic assays.
Pathway reconstitution in Nicotiana benthamiana and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Orthology analyses for comparative genomics.

Main Results:

H. umbraculigerum produces Cannabis-type cannabinoids, including 4.3% cannabigerolic acid, primarily in leaf glandular trichomes.
Identification of core and tailoring enzymes involved in cannabinoid biosynthesis.
Discovery of previously unknown cannabinoid metabolites.
Evidence of parallel evolution of cannabinoid synthesis in H. umbraculigerum and Cannabis.

Conclusions:

Helichrysum umbraculigerum represents an unexploited source of diverse cannabinoids.
The identified biosynthetic pathways and enzymes offer tools for engineering cannabinoids in heterologous hosts.
Cannabinoid biosynthesis has evolved independently in different plant species.